Charity Golf Challenge Will Feature Miss USA Contestants

OCEAN CITY – Around this time last year, two events going
on simultaneously brought national exposure to the resort area including a CBS
golf reality show and a visit to Ocean City by many of the Miss USA pageant
contestants, and while those events did not return this year, there is an
upcoming event planned that will combine the best attributes of the two.

The “Birdies by the Beach” charity golf challenge,
benefiting the Best Buddies Maryland program, is coming to the Ocean City Golf
Club in June and will feature at least eight Miss USA pageant representatives
on hand to serve as caddies during the event. Miss USA representatives from
eight states have already committed to the tournament and event organizers
remain hopeful Miss USA 2007 herself, Rachel Smith, who won the contest as Miss
Tennessee, will be serve as hostess for the charity event.

The golf tournament in Ocean City will benefit Best
Buddies Maryland, a non-profit organization whose purpose is to seek meaningful
one-on-one friendships between students with intellectual disabilities and
their non-disabled peers. The friendships provide growth, understanding and
acceptance for students with disabilities as well as their families as they
witness positive changes in their child’s attitudes and behaviors.

Best Buddies International was founded in 1989 and Best
Buddies Maryland was formed in 1994. The state affiliate oversees 84 middle
school, high school and college chapters throughout Maryland pairing over 3,000
intellectually disabled individuals with their non-disabled classmates.

“In many high schools and middle schools, students with
intellectual disabilities are still segregated from their non-disabled peers,”
said Christian Metzger of Best Buddies Maryland, who is organizing the Birdies
at the Beach tournament in Ocean City. “Their classrooms are secluded in a
special part of the school, they eat lunch on their own in the cafeteria and
they do not have the same opportunities to participate in recreational
activities with students without disabilities.”

The Birdies on the Beach tournament is scheduled for June
25 at the Ocean City Golf Club in South Point. The event gets started with
registration and refreshments from 10-11 a.m. with a shot-gun start beginning
at 11 a.m. The action on the course will be followed by post event reception
and party featuring live music including the Fuzzy Bunny Slippers. There will
also be auctions, silent auctions and other giveaways and prizes.

Best Buddies Maryland is looking for event sponsors on
several levels from a title sponsor and presenting sponsor to gold level
sponsor all the way down to individual hole and tee sponsors and golf cart
sponsors. Depending on the level of sponsorship commitment, the Miss USA
pageant representatives will be available as caddies throughout the tournament.

Event
organizers are also starting to open registration for golfers and/or teams of
golfers, again with the Miss USA girls on hand to be available as caddies. For
more information, about participating in the charity event as a golfer and/or a
sponsor, contact Christian Metzger and Best Buddies Maryland at 410-327-9812,
or email golfregistration@bestbuddies.org.

Featured Stories

BERLIN – A historic South Main Street home suffered significant damage during a fire Tuesday afternoon. Five fire companies responded to 414 S. Main St. shortly after 1 p.m. Tuesday as smoke poured from the two story structure. Though the fire was quickly brought under control, the home — known locally as the Harvey P…. Read more »

OCEAN CITY — One month after a plan of action called for eliminating most troublesome motorized special events in Ocean City, a task force, appointed by Mayor Rick Meehan, is set to meet for the first time on Thursday. It was standing room only in mid-November when the Mayor and Council received a presentation to… Read more »

WEST OCEAN CITY – The health of Maryland’s coastal bays remained consistent last year, according to a report card released by the Maryland Coastal Bays Program (MCBP) and its partners this week. In 2016, the coastal bay system received a C-plus in an annual report card that was unveiled at the Ocean City Marlin Club… Read more »

Berlin’s 47th Annual Christmas parade attracted a crowd of several thousand who lined the parade route along Main Street to near capacity Thursday night. A total of 83 groups participated in the parade which was sponsored by the Town of Berlin and Berlin Main Street, in cooperation with the merchants of Berlin. The parade is… Read more »